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SAFFiR, the humanoid firefighting robot that the US Navy and Virginia Tech engineers have been developing for years, is now more than just a blueprint. In fact, the military division has already demonstrated what the biped can do aboard one of its decommissioned ships. During a series of tests conducted in November 2014, it worked well enough to navigate uneven floors (extremely difficult for humanoid machines), identify equipment using thermal imaging and handle a hose to put out small fires. The Shipboard Autonomous Firefighting Robot did need a bit of help from a sidekick, though. No, not the firefighting snakebot Anna Konda (which is unfortunate, if you think they're the perfect pair), but a small drone created by Carnegie Mellon's Robotics Institute.

Fighting wildfires is sometimes a daunting prospect with manned aircraft; pilots can't always fly around the clock or cover every patch of land. They won't have to if Lockheed Martin's efforts pan out. It recently demonstrated a tweaked version of its unmanned K-MAX helicopter that can work in tandem with a quadrotor drone, Indago, to stamp out fires with relatively little human intervention. As you'll see in the clip below, Indago serves as a forward scout that marks any hotspots. After that, K-MAX swoops in with a bucket to douse the flames. It fetches more water on its own, too.

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dronefirefirefightingforestfiresindagok-maxlockheedmartinuavvideoWed, 19 Nov 2014 02:54:00 -050021|20995716http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/11/saffir-autonomous-firefighting-humanoid-robot/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/11/saffir-autonomous-firefighting-humanoid-robot/http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/11/saffir-autonomous-firefighting-humanoid-robot/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget#commentsIt took six years, but at long last, Anna Konda has a formidable firefighting partner. SAFFiR, also known as the Shipboard Autonomous Firefighting Robot, is being shaped by scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory. As the story goes, it's a humanoid robot that's being engineered to "move autonomously throughout the ship, interact with people, and fight fires, handling many of the dangerous firefighting tasks that are normally performed by humans." Outside of being stoic (and brawny) from tip to tip, it's also outfitted with multi-modal sensor technology for advanced navigation and a sensor suite that includes a camera, gas sensor, and stereo IR camera to enable it to see through smoke. We're told that its internal batteries can keep it cranking for a solid half-hour, while being capable of manipulating fire suppressors and throwing propelled extinguishing agent technology (PEAT) grenades. Wilder still, it'll be able to balance in "sea conditions," making it perfect for killing flames while onboard a ship. Of course, it's also being tweaked to work with a robotic team, giving it undercover powers to eventually turn the flames on the folks that created it. Paranoid? Maybe. But who are we to be too careful?

Update: Turns out, the same Dr. Hong that we had on The Engadget Show is responsible for this guy as well. It's the next step in evolution of the CHARLIhumanoid, and the two photos seen after the break are credited to RoMeLa: Robotics & Mechanisms Laboratory, Virginia Tech.

We've seen robot firefighters before, and even a robot firefighting contest, but it looks like some brave bots from the folks at Qinetiq are among the first to actually see service, although their roles are decidedly limited for the time being. According to Popular Mechanics, the robots are only being used to put out fires involving Acetylene gas, which had previously simply been left to burn themselves out due to the risk of explosions. With the bots, however, they're able get things moving along far more quickly, which is especially useful when the blaze is causing train delays. It seems that's a job too big for just one robot, however, as Qinetiq has reportedly been commissioned to put three bots into service during a six month trial period, including a Talon bot that uses thermal imaging to asses the situation, a 2,160-pound Brokk 90 robot that can "tear through walls or shove vehicles out the way," and last but not least the ATV-sized "Black Max" that actually douses the situation. Sadly, it seems that the bots are all remotely-controlled for the time being, and not fully autonomous, but we're sure it's only a matter of time before they really get to show what they're capable of.

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firefire fighterfire fightingFireFighterFireFightingfirefighting robotsFirefightingRobotsqinetiqrobotrobot firefighterRobotFirefighterWed, 05 Dec 2007 16:36:00 -050021|1055803http://www.engadget.com/2007/10/28/i-garments-smart-suit-helps-disaster-relief-agents/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi
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Designed to help firefighters communicate independently of unreliable traditional systems such as cellphone networks, i-Garment's "smart suit" does more than just enable voices to be heard. The suit also packs in location and health monitoring, with a whole infrastructure behind it including multiple stages from the field vehicle back to HQ. The European Space Agency recently approved the suit after a series of tests including firefighting scenarios: it's not currently planned for the US, but it wouldn't be surprising to see this or a similar system over here sometime soon.

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FirefighterFirefightingi-garmentSun, 28 Oct 2007 16:44:00 -040021|1023741http://www.engadget.com/2007/02/22/ubiko-nursebot-retasked-with-sniffing-out-fires/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2007/02/22/ubiko-nursebot-retasked-with-sniffing-out-fires/http://www.engadget.com/2007/02/22/ubiko-nursebot-retasked-with-sniffing-out-fires/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget#commentsOne of the many ways in which robotic laborers are superior to their human counterparts is their ability to be easily re-purposed: one day you're an underpaid, under-appreciated nursebot chain-smoking with your co-workers in the break room, and the next day you're equipped with some new peripherals and tasked with ratting out those very same smokers along with other potential fire hazards. Such is the life of a Tmsuk-manufactured robot named Ubiko, who was snatched away from its budding career as an unassuming hospital receptionist by researchers from Kyushu University and the Kanazawa Institute of Technology, and retrofitted with a unique olfactory sensor programmed to recognize the distinctive odors of smoke and ash. This new electronic sniffer allows Ubiko to pick up scents too faint for the human proboscis to detect, giving it a "nose up" when it comes to tracking down small fires before they turn into raging infernos. Since the bot isn't equipped with any actual firefighting paraphernalia, its only job is wirelessly alerting authorities to potential problems and then scooting away before it melts into the floor; these so-called "authorities" then have the grueling task of pressing yet another button to deploy either an Anna Konda or SACI bot to make short work of the lit candle or smoldering cigarette butt.

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e-nosefire fightingFireFightingnursebotubikoThu, 22 Feb 2007 10:38:00 -050021|816368http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/05/tactile-display-could-convey-signals-on-soldiers-backs/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/05/tactile-display-could-convey-signals-on-soldiers-backs/http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/05/tactile-display-could-convey-signals-on-soldiers-backs/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget#commentsAlthough glitzy, stat-filled jerseys are certainly sufficient ways to get information off your chest (ahem), a new vibrating vest could give "body language" an entirely new meaning. Joining the air-conditioned and insulating renditions, this snazzy vest features a "tactile display" on the back, which is created by 16 small vibrating motors that are connected to an internal wireless control unit. The jacket "writes symbols and messages on its wearer's back," and while the actual writing resembles Braille more than text, it can supposedly be used to "send important commands to soldiers or firefighters, warning them of imminent danger when ordinary radios cannot be used." Commands are beamed to the vests via a wirelessly-enabled computer, and can stealthily inform platoons to stop, look in a specific direction, run, or slow down. The US Army is partially funding the research, as it hopes to investigate different ways to communicate when hand signals and / or radio transmissions aren't effective. During initial testing, results have shown nearly flawless interpretation by participants, and while we're not exactly sure when we can expect rumble-equipped gear to grace our armedforces, the problem of "excess noise from the motors" has to be quelled before hitting the battlefield.

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alarmalertarmybattlefirefightinghandsfreemessagemessagingmitresearchsoldiersoldierstactileususavestvibratevibratingwarwarfarewarningFri, 05 Jan 2007 01:11:00 -050021|729068http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/03/armtecs-saci-firefighting-robot/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget&ncid=rss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/03/armtecs-saci-firefighting-robot/http://www.engadget.com/2006/08/03/armtecs-saci-firefighting-robot/?utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Engadget#commentsIt seems the Foundation for Industrial and Scientific Research in Norway (SINTEF) isn't the only game in town, er, the world, out to make firefighters' jobs a lot easier (or endangered). Brazil's ARMTEC has crafted a water-blasting robot -- dubbed SACI -- that would make a warehouse of Super Soakers look like child's play. The bot, obviously immune to smoke, fear, and extreme heat, can quench flames in a trio of ways: a direct stream, foam blast, or a wide-reaching "mist" approach. To extinguish those hard-to-reach hot spots, it touts a maximum blast of 60 meters, and the cannon pivots from 20 - 70 degrees vertically while being wheeled around on the tank-like track system. Unlike the Anna Konda, which has motors powered by a regular fire hose, this remotely controlled machine requires batteries to maneuver itself around. But this fearless commander doesn't get burnt out quickly, as it can pump fluids for three solid hours before needing a recharge. So if your local fire department has too many flames to handle, and not enough men to keep things cool, snagging a tag-team of SACIs may be in order to beat the heat.